The present invention concerns itself with carafes, particularly carafes that are used in conjunction with drip filter coffee makers. Drip filter coffee makers generally dispense brewed coffee from an opening that is elevated above a station for a carafe. In coffee makers of this type, the station sometimes comprises a warming plate situated below a removable carafe. The warming plate keeps the coffee in the carafe warm. However, the continuous operation of the warming plate, besides consuming electricity, tends to degrade the quality of the coffee contained in the carafe. Thus, in more sophisticated examples of the drip coffee maker, the single wall glass carafe and warming plate is replaced by a thermally insulated carafe that does not require a warming plate.
A stainless steel, thermally insulated carafe is ideal for use in a drip filter coffee maker. It is durable, washable and aesthetically pleasing. However, the conventional vacuum technology that would normally be used in the fabrication of a stainless steel, thermally insulated carafe has certain disadvantages. First, the stainless steel is not transparent, and therefore the level of the brew within the carafe is not immediately ascertainable with a simple visual inspection as would be the case for a glass carafe. Second, conventional double wall vacuum technology as applied to a spun stainless steel vessel results in a vessel having a primary opening that is concentric with the cylindrical walls of the vessel. A single, central opening is no liability when the carafe is being filled, from above. However, keeping in mind that a small opening is preferred for heat retention, a centrally located opening is a liability when the contents of the carafe are being dispensed. This is particularly true because a conventional carafe has a wide body shape to maximise the carafe volume underneath the coffee machine's dispenser. Thus, in some carafe designs with a concentric fill opening, the carafe must be nearly inverted to dispense the entire contents of it.